Expanded metal.



PATENTED AUG. 13. 1907.

w. D. FORSYTH. EXPANDBD'MBI'AL. APPLICATION TILED FEB-1; 1907.

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WILLIAM DIFORSYTH, OF PITTSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR- TO TRUSSFDCONCRETE STEEL COMPANY, OF DETROIT, MIOHIGAN,' A CORPORATION OFMICHIGAN.

EXPANDED-METAL.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Au 13,1907.

Application filed February I 1907. Serial No. 355.188.

, l concrete construction; and the process of making the same;

My invention consists of a process for forming expanded metal which ismade. up of three steps;1st,- shearing the sheet metal alonglongitudinal lines, the

the portions extending transversely of the line of the slits, one of theportions extending in one direction from the center of the lirst slitand parallel to the gen: eral line of slits, and the two other 'poltionsextending parallel to the first but in opposite directions and from theends of the first slit, the second portion of the slit extending upbetween the third and fourth portions of the next adjacent;2nd,striking' up the tongues which are formed by the first, third andfourth slits spoken of, so that saidtongues project at right angles fromthe body of the plato and have portions at their ends projectingparallel to the plate; and 3rd, expanding the shecl. laterally so thatthe halves of the tongues will separate at their bascs and swing downtoward the main sheet.

. M y' invention also consists in a novel expanded metal consisting oflongitudinal ribs or bands connected by transverse ties, on ch in aplane at right angles to the main sheet. Those ties are formed in halvesconnected at the outer ends to the main ribs and connected together atthe inner-ends, the ribs and ties being integral.

My improved sheet metal is illustrated in the ac companying drawings inwhich Figure 1 shows a piece of sheet metal slitted pre paratory toplacing the same in the forming dies. Fig. is a view of the same afterpassingthrough the forming dies. Fig. 3 is atransverse and Fig. 4 2.Ionitudinal cross section on the lines 3-3 and 4-4 of Fig. '2respectively, both inverted. 'Fig. 5 is a top "View, Fi, 6 is a bottomview and Fig. 7 is an end view of the sheet after it has been expanded.

Similar reference chars-ctsrs refer to like parts throughout the severalviews.

close together and the plaster to be carried is not heavy, number 32sheet nietal may be employed,

slits being formed of four connected. portions, one 0t My improvedexpanded 'nietal may be formed oi while in case the material is to beused as a tension 5 member for long composite concrete and uiclal floorspans, its thickness may be one-eighth of an inch or more.- While I haveshown a sheet with but three lines of slits and tour ribs, it will beevident lhat any number of lines of slit sand ribs are possible. Inl'orui- (i0 iug this sheet metal, the slitting may be done by a sell'feeding machine which slits the entire sheettransver ely to the rows ofslits at a single stroke and at the saute time strikes up the tonguesfrom a line of slits caused by the previous stroke.

In Fig. l the sheet 1 is provided with threelongiludinal lines of slitsEach slit is composed of four portions, the transverse portion 2, alongitudinal portion 3 which connects to the middle of.thc part 2 andex-- tends to the right in Fig. 1,- and two portions 4 and Whiqh connectto the e nds of part 2 and extend to the left in Fig. 1. The portion 3of one slit extends up between the parts 4 and 5 of the next adjacentslit and the distance between the end of'the part 3, and the part 2 ofthe next adjacent slit is preferably about the same as the transversedistancev between this part it and the parts 4 and 5 of the adjacentslit. The sheet having been slitted, it is placed where it may be actedupon by a forming die Which'prcsses down the tongue included between theparts 2, 4 and 5 of each slit bending it so as to extend at a rightangle to the main sheet and also bending the ends 7 of the tongues sothat they are extended parallel to the main sheet-as shown in F 3-mid 4.Referring to the first four figures, it will be noticed that thesetongues are bent. up on a transverse of line extending across the sheetat the ends of the portions of the slots marked 4 and 5, and that theends of the tongues whichare parallel to the main portion of the sheetare bent on lines that extend across the sheet at the ends of theportions 3 of the slots. The tongues thus struck up are split theirentire length with the exception of the small bent-over ends 7 ol' thesame, which ends of the tongues now form the only connection between thelongitudinal ribs (3. There are thus formed upstanding tongues whichhave short bent-over portions 7 to which are connected the parts 8,which parts in turn connect to the ribs (3 at 1).

After the sheet has been formed, the outer longitudinal ribsG are pulledfrom each other which will cause all the tongues to open along the slots3, and the portions 7 of the tongues will fold up on their central linesuntil they approach each other, and the side portions 8 will bond at thelines!) until the parts 8 of each rib assume the positions indicated inFig. 7. The resultant material is therefore composed of ribs orlongitudinal members 6 connected by a series oi lies. ouch of which iscomposed of a pair of members Sharing a connecting portion 7, and havingouter ends bent at right angles and united to the longitudinal members 6by longitudinal portions at 9.

It will be noticed that. the distance that the longitudinal members 6can move from each other is equal to double the distance that theportion 3 of a slot extends between the parts 4 and 5 of an adjacentslot.-

All that. is necessary to expand the metal more is to increase thelength of the slots 3, 4 and 5. The resultant material possesses greattransverse strength for weight, because the parts 8 are at right anglesto the longitudinal members 6 and because they are so strongly connectedthereto. 7

Having now explained my improvement, what desire to secure by LettersPatent is:

1. The process for forming expanded metal which coir sists in slittingthe same along longitudinal lines so as to form parallel bands connectedby tongues split through their bases. striking up the tongues andbending the unsplit portion of the same back parallelto the mainshcet,and thou expanding the material by separating the longitudinal nicmborslaterally.

2. The process for forming expanded metal which consisls in shearing asheet to form longitudinal lines of slits, each slit comprising atransverse portion, a. longitudinal portion connected to the center ofthe transverse slit. and two other longitudinal portions extending inthe opposite direction from the' first and connecting to the mass? endsof the transverse portion of slit, the central longitudinal portion ofone slit extending up between the oppositely extendinglongitudinal'portionsof the adjacent slit; and striking up the tonguesformed by such slits'nnd then expanding the metal laterally. I

The process of forming expanded metal which consists in slitting thesame along longitudinal lines so as to form parallel bands connected bytongues split through their bases, and expanding the material.

4. An expanded metal comprising a series of longitudirial members, and asries of ties connecting the same, each tie formed of two partsconnected at a line midway between the main tension members, all themembers being integral.

5. An expanded metal formed from a sheet which is slitted alonglongitudinal parallel lines, each slit formed of a transverse portion, acentral longitudinal portion, and a pair of longitudinal portionsextending from the ends of the transverse portion in theoppositedirection WluliIA'M I). FORSYTII. Witnesses l-hiw.\la N. laonnsnx,Enr/num'rn M. known.

6. An expanded metal comprising longitudinal members,

